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Donovan Ezeiruaku

Prospect Profile: Donovan Ezeiruaku

April 20th, 2025 at 10:00pm CST by Ely Allen

Boston College doesn’t always act as a pipeline of talent into the NFL, but often, the players they do put into the league (e.g. Matt Ryan, Luke Kuechly, Chris Lindstrom) have potential to be some of the best at their respective positions. Premier pass rusher Donovan Ezeiruaku has potential to do the same for the Eagles as a possible first-round pick this coming Thursday.

Originally a Philadelphia native, Ezeiruaku grew up and went to high school just half an hour south of the city at Williamstown HS (NJ). Even after leading his high school to back-to-back state championships, Ezeiruaku didn’t have a rank on most recruiting sites. He ended up being ranked as a three-star athlete, with 247Sports ranking him as the country’s 195th-best linebacker.

After getting his second ring at the high school level, Ezeiruaku started to garner some attention, picking up offers from FCS programs like Holy Cross, Stony Brook, and Wagner. His intelligence was on display, as well, as he saw offers come in from Harvard and Princeton. Eventually, FBS offers would arrive with Northern Illinois, Old Dominion, Temple, Boston College, and Vanderbilt all soliciting his services. Without the availability to take visits because of COVID-19, Ezeiruaku committed to head coach Jeff Hafley and the Eagles sight unseen.

As a true freshman, Ezeiruaku didn’t start but played a huge role off the bench, logging three sacks and four tackles for loss in 10 game appearances. Becoming a full-time starter in 2022, he earned All-ACC second-team honors with a breakout season that saw him lead the team in both sacks (8.5) and tackles for loss (14.5). Despite a down season for the Eagles defense the following year, Ezeiruaku still led the team in both categories while only recording two sacks and 6.5 tackles for loss in 13 starts.

Whatever Ezeiruaku lacked in production in 2023, he made up for in his senior season. This past year, Ezeiruaku finished second in the country with 16.5 sacks (behind only Marshall’s Mike Green) and fourth in the country with 20.5 tackles for loss (behind Green, Penn State’s Abdul Carter, and Ohio State’s JT Tuimoloau). Because he played in one fewer game than Green, Ezeiruaku passed him on avergae as first in the country with 1.38 sacks per game (over Green’s 1.33). Similarly, Carter and Tuimoloau both played in 16 games, so Ezeiruaku passed them to finish second in the country with 1.71 tackles for loss per game (behind only Green’s 1.73).

There’s lots to like about Ereizuaku as a pure pass rusher. He has great bend and acceleration during an outside speed rush. He also has a range of pass rushing moves that utilize his lateral mobility and quickness. He also has the flexibility to rush from both sides of the ball. He showed durability throughout his time in Chestnut Hill, starting 36 straight contests after missing three games his freshman year. He also showed leadership characteristics as a team captain in his last two years of school.

Ezeiruaku isn’t a perfect pass rushing prospect, though. Ideally, he needs to add size and strength in order to compete with NFL linemen, particularly since he doesn’t have an effective bullrush move. That lack of muscle moves can limit him if he gets pinned inside on a pass rush. While he’s an elite disruptor, he lacks elite abilities on other parts of the field. He rarely showed an ability to drop into coverage, and if a quarterback or ball carrier slips away from him, he doesn’t have great speed to pursue.

These shortcomings haven’t stopped teams from doing plenty of homework on Ezeiruaku as a potential first-round pick. The reigning ACC Defensive Player of the Year and consensus All-American (the school’s first since running back Andre Williams in 2013) was a hot topic among scouts at the start of the month and has only seen his stock rise from there. While some view him as an early-Day 2 prospect, a run on pass rushers could help Ezeiruaku slip into some first-round money, and with how deep this year’s pass rushing group is, a run is likely to occur.

Ravens Draft Rumors: Edge, Kicker, DL, CB, S

April 18th, 2025 at 9:59pm CST by Ely Allen

The Ravens are well-known for their draft approach of taking the best players available regardless of position, though they’re not above taking a player at a position of need if they believe it’s at a good value. That being said, Tony Pauline of sportskeeda claimed today that Baltimore is “believed to be in the market for an edge rusher in the first round.”

The Ravens aren’t likely to reach for a player at a position at which they’ve already spent a 2024 third-round pick, 2023 fourth-round pick, 2022 second-round pick, and 2021 first-round pick. Because of this, I would think that this would only be true if a top-ranked pass rusher falls to them in the back half of the first round.

Obviously, a player like Abdul Carter isn’t expected to be around by the 27th overall pick. After that, anything can happen, and while it might not be likely, it wouldn’t be a surprise if players like Shemar Stewart, Mike Green, or Mykel Williams were around that late. Options like Donovan Ezeiruaku and James Pearce are expected to be around in that range, and Baltimore could certainly pursue them, but only if they perceive them to be one of the top players available.

Here are notes on a few other positions of focus for Baltimore when next week’s draft occurs:

  • Ongoing legal issues with future Hall of Fame kicker Justin Tucker have the Ravens in an uncertain position on special teams for the first time since Tucker signed as an undrafted free agent out of Texas in 2012. As a result, Baltimore has been doing its research on kickers in this year’s draft class and could draft a kicker for the first time in their franchise’s history, per ESPN’s Jamison Hensley. The Ravens are the only team not to have drafted a kicker in the common draft era, and general manager Eric DeCosta admits “there’s no blueprint for finding a kicker.” If they find the right kicker at the right time, though, we could see the selection made. Two options on the table could be in-state rivals Andres Borregales out of Miami (FL) and Ryan Fitzgerald out of Florida State.
  • Following the retirement of Michael Pierce and the coming contract year for Travis Jones, defensive tackle is a position of need for Baltimore in this year’s draft. DeCosta confirmed as much, per Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, calling the position a priority. DeCosta called this year’s class fairly deep at defensive line and claimed “there’s an opportunity for (them) to get better” at the position.
  • Another position that DeCosta singled out was cornerback. After losing Brandon Stephens and Tre’Davious White to free agency, the team added Chidobe Awuzie. They also roster recent draft picks Jalyn Armour-Davis and T.J. Tampa as depth pieces. While DeCosta didn’t guarantee anything, he told the media that “it’s a pretty safe bet that the Ravens will be drafting at least one cornerback next week,” per Zrebiec. The team is likely to start Nate Wiggins and Awuzie on the outside with Marlon Humphrey manning the nickelback role, so they could look for an upgrade over Awuzie, but at the very least, adding depth is a necessity.
  • DeCosta didn’t mince words about the safety position either, per Zrebiec. Despite being “fairly confident” that Ar’Darius Washington will return after presumably signing his exclusive rights free agent tender, DeCosta said that it was “more than likely” that Baltimore would still add a safety in the draft, as well. Washington and Kyle Hamilton would return as starters from last year, but the only depth behind them currently are two rookies from last year, Sanoussi Kane (seventh round) and Beau Brade (undrafted).

DL Draft Visits: Stewart, Ezeiruaku, Pearce, Nolen

April 16th, 2025 at 4:49pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Texas A&M defensive lineman Shemar Stewart has visited several teams ahead of next week’s draft, in which he is expected to be selected in the first round.

Stewart started on the East Coast, visiting the Patriots last Thursday,per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, before traveling to Pittsburgh on Friday, per Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Stewart then visited the Bills on Saturday and the Bears on Monday (via Ryan Fowler of The Draft Network) ahead of his final pre-draft visit to San Francisco today (via NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero).

The flurry of visits make it clear that Stewart is likely to be a first-round pick and may even break into the top 10. His 6-foot-5, 267-pound frame offers elite athleticism, as evidenced by his superb testing numbers at the NFL Combine. However, he struggled to translate that into production in college with just 4.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss across his last three seasons in College Station.

Teams will have to weight Stewart’s untapped physical potential with his need to develop his pass-rush moves, play recognition, and overall technique that may limit his instant impact in the NFL.

  • Boston College edge rusher Donovan Ezeiruaku has also met with a number of teams as he pushes for a first-round draft billing. He visited the Panthers last week, and on Monday, he went to the Commanders’ facility in Ashburn, Virginia, according to SB Nation’s Ken Johannesen. Ezeiruaku didn’t reach the same eye-popping testing numbers as Stewart, but he does bring a refined array of pass-rush moves that helped him rack up 16.5 sacks in 2024.
  • Like Stewart, Tennessee edge rusher James Pearce is visiting the 49ers today, according to Rapoport. He already visited the Bengals, Cardinals, Colts, Cowboys, Falcons, and Saints, suggesting that a dip in his public draft stock may not reflect his value to NFL teams. Pearce led the SEC with 10.0 sacks in 2023, but took a slight step back in 2024, which moved his projected draft slot later in the first round.
  •  Ole Miss defensive tackle Walter Nolen added the Cardinals and the Packers to a list of visits that already included the Bengals, Cowboys, 49ers, and Panthers. He visited Arizona on April 7, according to Rapoport, and completed a trip to Green Bay earlier this week, per Matt Schneidman of The Athletic. Nolen is believed to have a wide range of evaluations across the league, so teams like the Bengals, Cardinals, and Packers may view him as a mid- to late-first round pick while the Cowboys, 49ers, and Panthers may be hoping he falls to their selections early in the second round.

2025 NFL Draft Visits: Schwesinger, Cowboys, Nolen, Ezeiruaku, Burden, Turner, Bond, Steelers, Emmanwori

April 6th, 2025 at 10:14pm CST by Ely Allen

This isn’t exactly a visit in the sense of top-30 visits, like most of the rest of bullets that follow this will be, but UCLA linebacker Carson Schwesinger held a private pro day earlier this week in Los Angeles and had 30 teams in attendance, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

While, obviously, not a comprehensive list, Schefter specifically mentions the Cowboys, Giants, Saints, Chargers, and Broncos, and notes that the linebackers coaches from Dallas, New York, and New Orleans all met privately with Schwesinger.

Schwesinger is not currently the top-ranked linebacker prospect in most analysts’ eyes, but he often slides in as the second-best off-ball linebacker in the class behind Alabama’s Jihaad Campbell — third if you count Georgia defender Jalon Walker, who has the ability to play every linebacker spot at the next level. Some thought Schwesinger may sneak into the back end of the first round at the end of the month, but more likely is that he hears his name on Day 2. Per Tony Pauline of sportskeeda, it would be surprising to see him fall past the first half of the second round.

Here are some more prospect-NFL team connections we’ve seen recent reports on:

  • The Cowboys have certainly been very busy in the runup to the 2025 NFL Draft. On Friday, the team held their invite-only “Dallas Day,” hosting draft prospects without the visits counting towards their top-30 visits. According to Jordan Schultz of FOX Sports, North Carolina running back Omarion Hampton met with the team at “Dallas Day.” The well-balanced rusher continues to skyrocket up draft boards, is likely to join Ashton Jeanty in the first round, and has several other visits lined up.
  • Jeanty was also in attendance on Friday, per ESPN’s Todd Archer. We had relayed that Jeanty would be taking a top-30 visit with the Cowboys, but it’s unclear whether this is what was meant in that original report. Also in attendance for “Dallas Day” were Texas A&M defensive tackle Shemar Turner, Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon, TCU wide receivers Savion Williams and Jack Bech, Texas quarterback and offensive lineman Quinn Ewers and Cameron Williams, and Miami tight end and running back Elijah Arroyo and Damien Martinez.
  • Also in attendance at “Dallas Day” was Ole Miss defensive tackle Walter Nolen. Per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2, Nolen will follow up his Dallas visit with a visit with the Panthers on Monday and a visit with the Bengals some other time this week.
  • Joining Nolen in Carolina on Monday will be Boston College pass rusher Donovan Ezeiruaku, per Joe Person of The Athletic. The ACC Defensive Player of the Year has been a hot topic with multiple scouts of late, per ESPN’s Jordan Reid. He’s currently viewed as an early-Day 2 prospect, and his stock continues to rise.
  • Speaking of another “Dallas Day” athlete, Wilson of KPRC 2 provided an updated list of teams that Turner, from Texas A&M, is set to visit with. We already noted his recent visit in New Orleans, but Wilson tells us that Turner has also visited the Texans and plans to visit the Ravens, Rams, Eagles, Dolphins, Colts, Buccaneers, and Cardinals.
  • According to Mike Klis of 9NEWS, the Broncos hosted Missouri wide receiver Luther Burden for a top-30 visit last week. The talented wideout fell off in 2024 after an incredible sophomore campaign with the Tigers, but his high ceiling makes him a borderline first-round prospect. Denver would love to bring in another talented weapon for young quarterback Bo Nix.
  • We already reported recent visits for Texas wide receiver Isaiah Bond in Atlanta, Chicago, Green Bay, and Los Angeles, but we now have a couple sources adding some new locations for the Longhorn. Wilson of KPRC 2 tells us that Bond had dinner with the Bills before a private workout Friday and a top-30 visit as well as visits with the Browns and Packers. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler adds that Bond has visits scheduled with the Chiefs and Titans, as well.
  • Brooke Pryor of ESPN tells us that the Steelers hosted a full house on Thursday. Prospects on hand last week included Texas wide receiver Matthew Golden, Florida State cornerback Azareye’h Thomas, Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson, and Pittsburgh tight end Gavin Bartholomew.
  • Lastly, Pryor adds that Pittsburgh was one of the recent teams to host South Carolina safety Nick Emmanwori. The pre-draft standout had reportedly lined up visits with Atlanta, Carolina, Seattle, Cincinnati, and Miami already. The Steelers’ interest in the Gamecock is no surprise as he’s trending towards being a Day 1 selection at this point.